Height 47.5cm, from the collection of Fujio Koyama, Tokyo National Museum, during the Japanese colonial period
A gilt-bronze pensive Bodhisattva from the Three Kingdoms period, resembling National Treasure No. 83, recently returned to Korea from Japan. This gilt-bronze pensive Bodhisattva is 47.5 cm tall, 11 cm wide, 7 cm wide at the shoulders, 10 cm wide at the chest, 17 cm high at the pedestal, and 23 cm wide at the pedestal. Although it is smaller than National Treasure No. 83, each part is complete, and the smile resembles that of the National Treasure. The entire Buddha statue is gilded brilliantly, and it is a perfect example of the metal art of the ancient Silla Dynasty.
The gilt-bronze Maitreya Bodhisattva Pensive Seated in Meditation recently unveiled by the Seun Art Museum (Director Jeong Se-woon), a ceramic appraisal institute, is known to have been purchased at a high price from around 1941, during the Japanese colonial period, as an artifact owned by Fujio Koyama (1900-1975, Tokyo National Museum appraisal committee member), an authority on Japanese ancient art.
This gilt-bronze Maitreya Bodhisattva Pensive Meditation Statue also wears a three-mountain crown (三山冠) with three semicircles connected on its head. The three-mountain crown is different from the crown that shows dignity as an ordinary crown, and it expresses the appearance that the crown prince wore during his ascetic period. This kind of three-mountain crown also appears in Southern Dynasty Buddhist statues and Northern Wei and Northern Qi Bodhisattva statues, and Emperor Wu of the Liang Dynasty wore the three-mountain crown and became a monk at Dongtai Temple.
This gilt-bronze Maitreya Bodhisattva in meditation has a round face, long eyebrows that extend from the forehead to form an arc, half-open eyes, neat lips, and a smiling expression, proving that it is the greatest masterpiece among Buddhist statues from the Three Kingdoms Period.
The ring and little fingers of the right hand are slightly bent, and the index and middle fingers are put together and lightly placed on the right side of the face. The toes of the right foot are bent with a lot of force. The thick soles express long asceticism. The neck is clearly marked with three lines, and a two-line neck ornament is worn like National Treasure No. 83. There used to be a halo (1.2cmx1cm) on the back of the head, but it has now disappeared and only traces remain.
The upper body is naked, with slightly prominent chest muscles and a slim waist. A belt decoration is expressed in the center of the abdomen. The decoration is similar to that of National Treasure No. 83.
The left footrest of this Buddha statue is expressed with a lotus pattern of the Tathagata dog, and shows a different form from National Treasure No. 83 or the wooden half-sitting Bodhisattva statue of Koryuji, a Japanese national treasure. Some believe that this half-sitting lotus pattern is from the Unified Silla period, but it is a pattern that also appears in Buddhist statues of the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Also, the inside of the half-sitting Bodhisattva statue shows traces of casting with an iron core embedded inside, just like National Treasure No. 83.
Mr. Fujio Koyama, who possessed this Buddhist statue, appraised it while working as a researcher at the Tokyo National Museum in Japan around 1941-1943, and wrote in his own handwriting on the outside of the artifact box that it was a Unified Silla Gilt-bronze Seated Bodhisattva Statue.
Lee Jae-jun, an art historian and advisor at the Research Institute of Korean Historical Sites (former member of the Cultural Heritage Committee of North Chungcheong Province) who appraised the statue, said, “This gilt-bronze pensive bodhisattva statue is thought to have been created in the mid-6th century during the Three Kingdoms period, and each part is well preserved, so it is a national treasure that can represent gilt-bronze pensive bodhisattva statues from the Three Kingdoms period, along with No. 83.”
He also added, “The pensive Bodhisattva statue was popular during the 6th and 7th centuries during the Three Kingdoms period under the influence of the Northern Qi Dynasty. It was worshipped as the future Buddha Maitreya and was transmitted to Japan, influencing the pensive Bodhisattva statues of the Asuka and Hakuho periods.”
Furthermore, he added, “In our country, the perception of the Bangasayusang as Maitreya Bodhisattva was especially prevalent in Baekje and Silla due to the influence of the Maitreya Sangsaenggyeong, and in Silla, along with the popularity of the Wheel-Turning Seongwang ideology, Hwarangdo was called Yonghwahyangdo, the future savior.”
An official from the Korea Ceramic Appraisal Institute explained, “The non-destructive testing results for this Buddha statue showed that it contains 80% copper (CU), 47.7% gold (AU), 6% tin (SN), and others. This is similar to the average value from the non-destructive scientific investigation report on gilt-bronze pensive bodhisattvas located in Korea and Japan conducted by the National Museum of Korea in 2017. The average composition of National Treasure No. 83 from the National Museum of Korea report is 81% copper, 4.1% tin, and 55.2% (large portion) to 0.0% gold.”
Reporter Yong-Seok Choi, Donga.com [email protected]
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2024-08-30 13:42:35